Preparing for the Patient Who Has Prion Disease

The mention of Creutzfeldt-Jakob (CJD) disease can be cause for apprehension in those responsible for the patients and/or for those responsible for cleaning, disinfecting, or sterilizing devices, including surgical instruments, used on a known or suspected patient with this disease. Although CJD has been discussed in the medical literature for many years, it is only in the last 10 or so years that it has become a “hot topic.”